Acrocephalus 2.J (128-129): 69-71, 2006
First data on the breeding of Fieldfare Turdus pilaris in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Prvi podatki o gnezdenju brinovke Turdus pilaris v Bosni in Hercegovini
Dubravko Dender1 & Dra`en Kotro{an2
1 Ornitolo{ko dru{tvo «Na{e ptice», Semira Fra{te 6, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, e-mail: dubravko_dender@yahoo.com
2 Zemaljski muzej Bosne i Hercegovine, Zmaja od Bosne 3, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, e-mail: kotrosan@bih.net.ba
Till 2006, the Fieldfare Turdus pilaris had been recorded in Bosnia and Herzegovina mainly during the periods of autumn migration and wintering. In the area of Sarajevo, the earliest record of the species was made in August 2004. During the regular bird watching carried out in April and May 2006, nesting of Fieldfare was recorded in the area of Ilid`a near Sarajevo (UTM BP85). On those occasions, four nests were found. One on of them was located in a hollow of a Small-leaf Lime Tilia cordata, the remaining three among the branches of maple Acer sp. and ash Fraxinus sp. trees. The presented data confirm the Fieldfare’s first nesting in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Key words: Fieldfare, Turdus pilaris, Bosnia and Herzegovina Klju~ne besede: brinovka, Turdus pilaris, Bosna in Hercegovina
1.    Introduction
In the course of the 20th century, Fieldfare Turdus pilaris spread its breeding range from the north of Europe towards central and southern Europe. Especially significant spreading of the species was recorded in the second half of the 20th century (Tiainen et al. 2003).
According to Matvejev (1976), Fieldfare had not bred in the Balkans until mid 1970s. According to the “avifauna overview” (as there were no numeric parameters in Catalogus made in the former Yugoslavia), the species was registered in the area, although not as a breeder (Matvejev & Vasi} 1973). The first actual nesting in the former Yugoslavia was recorded in 1975 at Podkoren, 3 km away from Kranjska Gora (Slovenia), when the species apparently spread its nesting range towards the south (Gregori 1977). During the 1980s, its nesting was for the first time recorded in Macedonia (Tiainen et al. 2003). At the turn of the century, the first nesting of Fieldfare in Croatia was registered in Gorski kotar (near Prezid, and in Singer near Mrkopalj) (Radovi} et al. 2003).
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, Fieldfare has so far been registered mainly during the periods of autumn migration  and  wintering,  while  in  the  region  of
Sarajevo the first record was made in August 2004 (Kotro{an 2005).
The aim of this article is to present the first data on the nesting of Fieldfare in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
2.    Research area and methods
During the avifaunal research carried out in April and May 2006 in Sarajevo and its close surroundings, several field trips were made to the area of Ilid`a. In its wider area, spreading at an altitude of about 550 m a.s.l., nesting of Fieldfare was being observed at Veliki Park, situated between the hotels Bosnia, Herzegovina and Serbia (UTM BP85).
Deciduous trees dominate in the park. The most numerous species of trees and shrubs in the park are of the Maple genus (Common Maple Acer campestre, Boxelder A. negundo, Norway Maple A. platanoides and Sycomore A. pseudoplatanus), Forsythia genus (European Forsythia Forsythia europaea and Border Forsythia F. intermedia), White Cedar Thuja occidentalis, European Larch Larix decidua, European Silver Fir Abies alba, Common Spruce Picea abies, Chinese Juniper Juniperus chinensis, Common Horse Chestnut Aesculus hippocastaneum, Silver Birch Betula
69
D. Dender & D. Kotro{an: First data on the breeding of Fieldfare Turdus pilaris in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Figure 1: Position of the research area
Slika 1: Lega raziskovanega obmo~ja
pendula, European Ash Fraxinus excelsior, Small-leaf Lime Tilia cordata, Tatarian Honeysuckle Lonicera tatarica, Common Elder Sambucus nigra, Snowberry Symphoricarpus albus, Mock Orange Philadelphus coronarius etc. ([ili} & Abad`i} 1981).
3. Results and discussion
During the visit to Ilid`a on 6 Apr 2006, 6 - 7 Fieldfare specimens foraging around the park near Velika Aleja were noted. The same situation was recorded during the ensuing visits to the area on 2 and 3 May. On 3 May 2006, two individuals were noticed chasing each other in a tree. An individual carrying something in its beak was also noticed, indicating a possibility of nest building, but the nest was not found on that day.
Three days later, on 5 May 2006 in the afternoon (around 15.00 h), the first author of this article noticed, after a long watch, a Fieldfare carrying earthworm to the hollow in the Small-leaf Lime, and eventually tossing droppings out of it. Also, during the watch, a Fieldfare’s fight with a Hooded Crow Corvus corone cornix and a Jackdaw Corvus monedula was also witnessed. Around 18.00 h, a pair was seen collecting caterpillars and carrying them to the nest. On 9 May 2006 (around 16.00 h), we visited the same area in order to confirm Fieldfare’s nesting and make photo-documentation. On that occasion, we heard chicks calling from the nest. In the adjacent grass,
70
6 foraging Fieldfares were noticed. During our stay there, a Fieldfare was seen on several occasions chasing a Jackdaw and a Hooded Crow that clearly came too close to the nest. Three days later, the first author found two more Fieldfare’s nests in the same area. The second nest was in a maple tree Acer sp., 20 m away from the nest seen previously. The nest was among branches, and there were also the chicks seen when the parents came close to it. The third nest, too, was in a maple tree, on forked branches at some 10 m above the ground. Chasing of crows and Jackdaws was seen here as well. The last nest was seen on 16 May 2006, near the second nest in an ash tree Fraxinus sp., some 12 m high. Chasing of crows was seen yet again. One of the Fieldfares hit a crow with droppings, and after
Figures 2: Hollow of a Small-leaf Lime Tilia cordata in the area of Ilid`a near Sarajevo, where Fieldfare’s Turdus pilaris nest was situated (April and May 2006)
Slika 2: Duplo v lipovcu Tilia cordata na sarajevski Ilid`i, v katerem je bilo odkrito gnezdo brinovke Turdus pilaris (april in maj 2006)
the attack it sang in flight. The observed specimens were usually foraging together with Starlings Sturnus vulgaris, but fights between these species were not noticed. In the area between Velika Aleja and Stoj~evac, no Fieldfares were observed.
A comparison of the Fieldfare’s behaviour during its nesting at Ilid`a with that in Stockholm and Uppsala, observed on 23 and 24 Apr 2006, has shown that the “Swedish” individuals were somewhat tamer during their encounters with humans than the “Bosnian” ones, but generally the species does not show great fear of human presence. Namely, if they are found on the ground they can be approached very closely, without them flying away. This confirms a high degree of the species’ adaptation to humans.
It   is   generally   known   that   this   species   nests
ACROCEPHALUS 2.J (128-I29): 69-71, 200Æ
individually and in colonies (Tiainen et al. 2003; Hogstad 2004). Data on the nesting of Fieldfare in Bosnia and Herzegovina coincide in many details (smaller colony, ways of building the nest etc.) with the first data obtained on its nesting in Slovenia (Gregori 1977). The only special feature is its nesting in a tree hollow, a fact that was not found in the literature. Also, its behaviour towards other species found near the nests (e.g. Hooded Crow) is in accordance with descriptions given by Hogstad (2004).
Finally, it can be concluded that the data on the Fieldfare’s occurrences in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the summer of 2004 (Kotro{an 2005) showed a possibility of the species’ nesting in the area of Sarajevo and is close surroundings, which has actually been confirmed during the recent research. Data from Croatia (Radovi} et al. 2003) and Europe generally (Tiainen et al. 2003) confirm the observations made by Gregori (1977) about the species spreading its nesting range, so the process is expected to continue.
4. Povzetek
V Bosni in Hercegovini je bila brinovka Turdus pilaris do leta 2006 opa`ena ve~inoma v ~asu jesenske selitve in prezimovanja. Na obmo~ju Sarajeva so jo prvi~ zabele`ili avgusta 2004. V obdobju rednega opazovanja ptic (april in maj leta 2006) je bilo gnezdenje brinovk zabele`eno na obmo~ju Ilid`e in Sarajeva (UTM BP 85), ko so bila najdena {tiri gnezda, eno v duplu lipovca Tilia cordata, preostala tri pa na vejah javorja Acer sp. in jesena Fraxinus sp. V ~lanku predstavljeni podatki potrjujejo prvo gnezdenje brinovk v Bosni in Hercegovini.
5. References
Gregori, J. (1977): Vom Brüten der Wacholdredrossel,
Turdus pilaris L., in Slowenien, Jugoslawien. - Larus,
29-30: 83-88. Hogstad, O. (2004): Nest defence strategies in the Fildefare
Turdus  pilaris:  responses   on   avian  and  mammalian
predator. - Ardea 92 (1): 79-84. Kotro{an, D. (2005): Letnje zadr`avanje drozda borovnjaka
(Turdus pilaris) u Sarajevu (Bosna i Hercegovina). -
Ciconia 14: 129-130. Matvejev, S.D. & Vasi}, V.F. (1973): Catalogus faune
Jugoslavie IV/3, Aves. - Academia Scientiarum et Artium
Slovenica, Ljubljana. Matvejev, S.D. (1976): Pregled faune ptica Balkanskog
poluostrva   (Piciformes   et   Passeriformes).   -   Posebna
izdanja, Srpska Akademija nauka i umjetnosti, knjiga
CDXCI,    Odjeljenje    Prirodno-matemati~kih    nauka
knjiga 46, Beograd.
Radovi}, D., Kralj, J., Tuti{, V. & ]ikovi}, D. (2003): Crvena knjiga ugro`enih ptica Hrvatske. - Ministarstvo za{tite okoli{a i prostornog ure|enja, Zagreb.
[ili}, ^. & Abad`i}, S. (1981): Stanje i upotrebna vrijednost ekosistema sarajevskog podru~ja. - Prvo savjetovanje o zelenilu urbanih podru~ja, Sarajevo.
Tiainen, J., [tastny, K. & Bejcek, V. (1997): Fieldfare Turdus pilaris, pp. 546-547 In: Hagemaijer, W.J.M. & Blair, M.J. (eds): The EBCC Atlas of European Breeding Birds. - T & AD Poyser, London.
Arrived / Prispelo: 1.6.2006 Accepted / Sprejeto: 5.10.2006
7I